The Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum is located on 206-208 Hill Street, Hannibal, Missouri, on the west bank of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

in the United States. It was the home of

Samuel Langhorne Clemens Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has pr ...

, better known as author Mark Twain, from 1844 to 1853. Clemens found the inspiration for many of his stories, including the white picket fence, while living here. It has been open to the public as a museum since 1912, and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

on December 29, 1962. It is located in the Mark Twain Historic District.

Buildings

The Boyhood Home is one of nine properties that comprise the present Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum complex. The legendary whitewashed fence of

Tom Sawyer Thomas Sawyer () is the titular character of the Mark Twain novel ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876). He appears in three other novels by Twain: ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884), ''Tom Sawyer Abroad'' (1894), and ''Tom Sawyer, Dete ...

borders the property. There are seven additional museum buildings as part of the complex - the Interpretive Center, Becky Thatcher House, Huck Finn House, J.M Clemens Justice of the Peace Office, Grant's Drug Store, the stone

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

(WPA) building that houses a gift shop, and the Museum Gallery, located at 120 N. Main St. The museum has acquired the "Becky Thatcher" house, home of Clemens' childhood sweetheart, Laura Hawkins. Its exterior was renovated and restored in 2010; while the interior re-opened in 2016. During the summer of 2006, the museum completed work on a replica of the "Huck Finn" house, being the home of Tom Blankenship, the boy upon whom Twain based the character of Huckleberry Finn. Exhibits in the Huck Finn House delve into Hannibal's history with slavery. The museum also owns and maintains the Tom and Huck Statue at the foot of Cardiff Hill. Erected in 1926, it is one of the earliest known statues erected to honor fictional characters. Other highlights of the museum properties include the Boyhood Home garden area, bordered by a high stone wall built by the WPA. The close proximity of the Mississippi River, the

Mark Twain Cave Mark Twain Cave — originally McDowell's Cave — is a show cave located near Hannibal, Missouri. It was named for author Mark Twain whose real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. Clemens lived in Hannibal from 1839 to 1853, age 4 to 17. It is ...

, and other settings found in Twain's novel lure thousands of visitors to the museum each year.

Collections

The museum's collection includes many first editions by Mark Twain, numerous personal items (including his

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

gown), the only known surviving white suit coat, and a vast array of Twain memorabilia, such as the death mask of his baby son Langdon, and a jewelry box Twain had hand-carved in Italy to his specifications as a gift to his wife, Olivia. There are many interactive exhibits including a replica stagecoach and river raft. These serve to highlight specific books by Twain: '' The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'', ''

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' or as it is known in more recent editions, ''The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'', is a novel by American author Mark Twain, which was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United St ...

'', ''

The Innocents Abroad ''The Innocents Abroad, or The New Pilgrims' Progress'' is a travel book by American author Mark Twain. Published in 1869, it humorously chronicles what Twain called his "Great Pleasure Excursion" on board the chartered vessel ''Quaker City'' ( ...

'', ''

Roughing It ''Roughing It'' is a book of semi-autobiographical travel literature by Mark Twain. It was written in 1870–71 and published in 1872, as a prequel to his first travel book ''The Innocents Abroad'' (1869). ''Roughing It'' is dedicated to Twa ...

'', and '' A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court''. Visitors can even sound a real steamboat whistle as they look out upon the Mississippi River. The museum also houses the second largest collection of original

Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...

paintings. These paintings were commissioned as illustrations for a special edition of ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' and ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn''. The museum also hosts regional art and touring exhibits.

Events

The museum sponsors many events throughout the year including children's events. Their educational outreach programs include teacher workshops, young author workshops, writers workshops, scholarly conferences, and a creative teaching award. On May 15, 2012, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the museum, a spokesperson announced the establishment of the "Mark Twain Lifetime Achievement Award" with

Hal Holbrook Harold Rowe Holbrook Jr. (February 17, 1925 – January 23, 2021) was an American actor, television director, and screenwriter. He first received critical acclaim in 1954 for a one-man stage show that he developed called ''Mark Twain Tonight!'' ...

named as the first recipient. In 2011 the museum released '' Mark Twain: Words & Music'', a double-CD benefit telling Twain's life in spoken word and song. The project was produced by

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

award-winner Carl Jackson and released on

Mailboat Records Mailboat Records is an independent record label established in 1999 by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett after his vanity label Margaritaville Records was absorbed by Island Records when they were sold to Universal Music Group, owner of Buf ...

. It features

Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffet ...

as Huckleberry Finn,

Garrison Keillor Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (; born August 7, 1942) is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show ''A Prairie Home Companion'' (called ''Garrison Keillor's Radio ...

as narrator,

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...

as Mark Twain, and Angela Lovell as

Susy Clemens Olivia Susan Clemens (March 19, 1872 – August 18, 1896) was the second child and eldest daughter of Samuel Clemens, who wrote under the pen name Mark Twain, and his wife Olivia Langdon Clemens. She inspired some of her father's works, at ...

. Singers include

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, including ...

Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver Doyle Lawson (born April 20, 1944) is an American traditional bluegrass and Southern gospel musician. He is best known as a mandolin player, vocalist, producer, and leader of the 6-man group Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. Lawson was inducted in ...

, Rhonda Vincent,

Bradley Walker Bradley Walker (October 14, 1877 – February 3, 1951) was a Nashville attorney who, in his youth, was found to be naturally proficient at virtually any sport he tried, including football, baseball, track, boxing, tennis and golf— in all th ...

, Carl Jackson, The Church Sisters,

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three li ...

, Brad Paisley,

Marty Raybon Marty Raybon (born December 8, 1959) is an American country music artist. He is known primarily for his role as the lead singer of the country band Shenandoah, a role which he held from 1985 to 1997, until he rejoined the band in 2014. He reco ...

, Val Storey,

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist b ...

, Joe Diffie, and Ricky Skaggs. Cindy Lovell, the executive director of the museum at that time, wrote the narrative, and several new songs were written for the project. In the summer, the museum is the destination of thousands of visitors. The town of Hannibal celebrate National Tom Sawyer Days over the 4th of July each year complete with whitewashing and frog jumping contests. The boyhood home is a focal point in these events.

References

External links

* *
Webcam showing Boyhood Home''Writings of Mark Twain'', broadcast from the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum
from

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American cable and satellite television network that was created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a nonprofit public service. It televises many proceedings of the United States ...

's ''

American Writers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum National Historic Landmarks in Missouri Historic American Buildings Survey in Missouri Historic house museums in Missouri Museums established in 1912 Quincy–Hannibal area Mark Twain Museums in Marion County, Missouri

Twain, Mark Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has pr ...

1912 establishments in Missouri Houses in Hannibal, Missouri Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Missouri Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Missouri National Register of Historic Places in Marion County, Missouri Twain, Mark Boyhood

Buildings

Collections

Events

See also

References

External links